Ideal ice making conditions have arrived, for now.
Almost one month after winter officially began, the idea of an outdoor skating rink could become a reality this week as temperatures dip into the minus double-digits.
In order to make it happen, Fiddlesticks Community Centre volunteers are braving the cold for what it's calling a "marathon flood" to get skates on the ice at Can-Amera Park.
"The volunteers were very excited about getting this started," Kim Fowler, executive director at Fiddlesticks Community Centre said.
"The city might've thought we were crazy but we have enough people committed."
Fowler said 13 hours of flooding was done on Sunday with many more to come throughout the week.
Not wanting to make any promises, she hopes to have the rink up as soon as possible.
The benefits of getting the rink operational are two-fold.
The first is the physical exercise, while the second is the social side of having a community space to meet up with friends and make new ones.
"We work on the decentralized community development model, it’s all about getting people to know each other," Fowler said.
"A connected neighbourhood is a safer neighbourhood. It's a community building exercise and that's what's important to us. It's the relationship building and sense of community."
Fowler is grateful to the City of Cambridge who supplies the water for free and a $175 to purchase items such as shovels to make the job easier.
But the bulk of her praise goes to the volunteers who offer their time to make sure the community has the opportunity to gather.
"I'd really like to focus on the volunteers and let the kids know that these people are doing it for free," Fowler, who also volunteers at the rink, said.
"These are random adults out there freezing their behinds off. This week we'll likely each spend 10 hours out in this weather."
Temperatures are set to remain below zero throughout the week, getting as cold as minus-19 on Tuesday night but could rise above zero next week.
Residents are asked to stay off the ice until it's ready and it's important people only go on it while wearing skates, Fowler said.
"We were out there yesterday getting things padded down and we have about two inches of packing," she said.
"If we have a warm snap, depending on how much ice we can get down, hopefully we'll be able to survive a few days of warmer temperatures."
Volunteers within the Fiddlesticks community are still being accepted.
Anyone interested in helping can contact [email protected].